MAGMA smelter related projects
Human activities have generated an enormous amount of industrial and household waste, which has been and continues to be disposed of in dumps, storage sites, deposits, and special landfills covering vast areas.
The problem of efficient processing of most of the waste as mentioned above is solved with the help of MAGMA, which is a cost-effective continuous skull smelting unit, that can process and convert the waste into useful products (metals, construction materials, thermal power, and electricity) by waste-free and environmentally clean technologies.
Versatile Applications of MAGMA Technology
MAGMA is a versatile technology that has multiple applications across various industries. Apart from the coke-free production of pig iron, it can be used in the following areas
A. MAGMA smelting unit for coke-free production of cast iron, using iron ore fines & Indian / Indonesian thermal coal
MAGMA uses the innovative liquid sodium cooling method. The heat transfer coefficient of liquid sodium is about 90 times higher than water. Liquid sodium maintains the temperature of the body of the smelting chamber at less than 500°C. Under such conditions, a skull is formed in the molten slag zone of the working space of MAGMA smelting chamber and this skull is used in place of conventional refractories. As a result, MAGMA can operate for a long time without interruption for maintenance.
In the MAGMA process, iron ore and limestone are preliminary heated by the off-gases of the smelting chamber in a rotary kiln to temperatures of 900-1,000°C. The heated charge is subsequently fed into MAGMA for smelting and reduction of iron oxides into iron in the liquid bath. Coal required for the reduction of iron ore is fed into the smelting chamber, and is burnt with oxygen. MAGMA reaches very high temperatures of up to 1,900°C in the working space of the smelting chamber and up to 1,650°C in the molten slag zone.
MAGMA is available in 5 sizes. A very large-sized MAGMA unit can produce about 2,60,000 tons of cast iron and also generate 20-24MWh of electricity, by using the heat from off gases.
B. MAGMA smelting unit for high-temperature recycling of unsorted municipal waste
The multi-purpose smelting unit MAGMA provides an autogenous process of high-temperature recycling of unsorted municipal waste on a layer of molten over-heated slag that forms from the mineral components of waste and fluxes that are specially added in the process of recycling.
- Advanced Coolant Technology: Uses liquid sodium as a coolant, a proprietary Russian innovation, deployed in nuclear reactors and submarines for over 30 years. It is 90 times more efficient than water.
- Extreme Temperature Processing: The smelting chamber operates at 1,800–1,900°C, with molten slag at 1,400–1,650°C, creating a ‘thermal shock’ that instantly heats waste, preventing dioxin formation.
- Superior Toxin Destruction: Maintains gases at 1,850°C for 3 seconds, ensuring nearly 100% elimination of carcinogenic dioxins and furans—far beyond the capabilities of existing technologies.
C. A Versatile Smelting Solution
MAGMA is a multi-purpose smelting unit designed for diverse industrial applications, including:
- Oxygen-melting of metal scrap & sponge iron
- Power generation from high-ash thermal coal
- Processing of steel slags of ferrous & non-ferrous metallurgy
- Processing of red mud from alumina production
- Processing of titaniferous magnetite ore
- Smelting of nickel, copper, tin, zinc & lead
- Processing of metal radioactive waste
D. MAGMA as a Brownfield Project: Ideal Implementation Scenarios
MAGMA can be seamlessly integrated as a brownfield project in existing facilities, enhancing efficiency and sustainability. It is ideal for upgrading metal processing, power generation, and waste recycling operations, offering advanced smelting capabilities for diverse industrial applications.
- Conversion of sponge iron plants into pig iron plants – MAGMA can convert the sponge iron plants into pig iron plants, using low grades of iron ore fines & cheaper Indonesian thermal coal to make pig iron and at the same time, increase the plant capacity by 2-3 times.
- Conversion of iron ore pellet plants into pig iron plants – Red hot pellets can be charged into MAGMA along with Indonesian coal to make pig iron. Off gases coming out of MAGMA at high temperatures can be used in the pellet plant; thus making the best use of available facilities
- MAGMA in blast furnaces & steel mills – MAGMA can convert the blast furnace dust, electric arc furnace dust, breeze coke, billet scale &rolling mill scales into pig iron & slag products.
- MAGMA in Electric Arc Furnaces / Converter plants – MAGMA can re-melt the oxidized slag from the electric arc furnace/converter, to recover the Fe from FeO (oxidized slag has 24-30% FeO) and to convert the remaining slag into clinker, for cement making.
- MAGMA in iron ore beneficiation plants – The tailings of the iron ore beneficiation plants (containing 40-50% Fe) can be directly used in MAGMA to make pig iron. In coal beneficiation plants, MAGMA can also use the waste coal (middlings & rejects).